Post Revenge
by Summer95
Summary: A story mostly dealing with how Ziva feels after 10x22 "Revenge". Oh, and then Tony comes over to her apartment... Rated T for a tiny swear word. You won't even notice it ;) TIVA!
1. Chapter 1

Post Revenge – Chapter 1

**Rated T** for a teensy-tinsy bit of swearing.

**Spoilers** for Chasing Ghosts, Berlin and Revenge. (Haven't seen the episodes myself yet though, so it's nothing explicit.)

_This is set after the episode Revenge, on the same night Ziva killed Bodner. It might grow into a multi chapter story, you never know, I feel really positive about some real Tiva right now and I'm really motivated about this. Leave a review if you like it, please!_

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Laying on her back staring at the ceiling, Ziva David knew that she would not be able to order her body to get up. She was always in control of her body but right then and there she thought she would not be able to move even if it cost her her life. It wasn't the pain from her various injuries resulting from the car crash and then her fight with Ilan Bodner earlier that night however, that kept her from moving. Everything in her head was still spinning around like in Tony's movies. That look on Vance's face when she told him it was over, the drive to her apartment, Gibbs telling her to call if there was anything she needed, Gibbs walking her to the door, him unlocking the door. She was in a trance-like state that she wasn't sure she would come out of on her own. She felt beat and at the same time completely numb. Her body felt like it was not attached to her mind anymore, it lay there, absolutely motionless, like she was asleep but her mind was in the exact opposite state. She did not register the sounds her apartment normally made, did not hear the sound of cars driving by. She could not even think about that, she was completely drawn into the film that was her life. It was like she was disconnected from the world.

She felt drained.

Pictures from her fight with Ilan were swirling around in her mind, mixing with other fights she had been in. She did not feel anything.

Her body was ripped out of its state of relaxation be the sound of the doorbell ringing. It was like every muscle in her body contracted at once. Later she would not remember getting up and opening the door.

It was Tony's face that brought her mind back to earth. It must have taken her a couple of seconds because he looked at her with that confused face that, in hindsight, clearly showed how much he cared. Then she finally snapped out of it and regained control over her actions. She put her gun down and let go of the door to let him in.

He stepped inside hesitantly, almost as if he was afraid she'd change her mind about allowing him to come in. She ignored it and gestured for him to go through the hallway to the living room. She took a breath and then followed him there. He was standing at the center of the room when she entered it.

"Well, I gotta say, this is a lot better than that crappy apartment you and McGee were holed up in a couple of days ago", he said, with his back to her, looking around the room. When he turned around after a moment he asked, "You gonna put that away? I don't think you'll need it", pointing at the gun she still had her fingers wrapped around.

She complied and slipped it into her holster again. Funny, she thought. She didn't even remember putting that on.

"You look like crap," he stated. "Still can't sleep?"

Now that he mentioned it, she was really tired. In her half-sleep/half-alert state she hadn't noticed, but yes, her eyes were burning and her body had felt like steel for the past couple of days anyway. She must have taken too long to answer because when she looked in his direction again, he was already moving towards her.

"Hey", he said. "Come on, let's get you to bed."

"Is that why you came?" She tried to joke, but it came out more like a murmur.

He smiled at her "You wish, sweet cheeks," he replied, also joking, but she knew he didn't mean it.

She started moving towards her bedroom. He followed her, still hesitant about being in her personal space.

She walked right through her bedroom, not caring that he might see that bra she had thrown in a corner a few days prior or her boxing gloves hanging on the doorknob of her closet. With her mind still swimming in a sea of exhaustion, she ran right into the wooden door that led to the bathroom. Shit, she really wasn't anywhere near awake.

He was right behind her, helping her stay standing, keeping her from falling in every sense of the word. Without a word, he opened the door for her and led her inside. As if it was the most natural thing in the world. He then helped her undress and redress in the pajamas that lay on her shelf, his gaze never once wavering from her eyes or her hands, never touching her anywhere inappropriate.

"All set?" He said when she was all dressed again. She turned to face him. His face held a compassionate expression. She nodded and he brought up one hand to cup the side of her face. "Come on then," he said. She took his hand in hers and led him to her bed. Just before she could get in she realized that he was still fully dressed. Reluctantly, she let go of his hand again. She turned around and was just about to ask him to stay when his face lit up. "You don't even have to ask, sweet cheeks," he smiled. Sighing, she crawled into bed and groaned as she lay down. It only hurt if you let it, and she did not have any energy left to stop from showing how much her muscles and joints ached. She half expected him to make a comment about it but all he did was get into bed beside her, turn off the light and then search for her hand again. "I'll be right here," he told her.

She gave his hand a light squeeze, "I remember_. Ani lo levad._"

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That last bit is supposed to be Hebrew I think you know what it's supposed to mean(I don't speak Hebrew though).


	2. Chapter 2

Sooo… I got sick. I have a really bad cold and I feel miserable buuuut! That means I had an excuse to stay in bed for the last three days and write! Most of it was crap though, so that explains why this took so long.

I'm not completely happy with it yet, so there might even be a third chapter :)

Same disclaimers and blah as in chapter one!  
Also; Chapter one of this story got more views than it had words. Twisted logic. :) I love you all for reviewing, following and adding this to you favourites!

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Ziva woke up on her back the next day. It was not a slow awakening. She just suddenly fell became aware surroundings, like she had never been asleep. It was dark in her room, she could tell even through her still closed eyelids, and she could hear the quiet humming of the lamp on the empty nightstand on her on. _Strange_. Then she listened more closely. Tony was still there. She could hear him breathe. It was too regular for him to be awake so she finally dared to open her eyes. Out of the corner of her eyes she could see him sitting, with his legs pulled up on the other side of the bed. On his knees he was balancing a book. It was then that he turned his head to find her eyes open. He closed the book and set it aside.

"You still snore," he said, with just a little bit of that sparkle in his eyes. _That explained it. As a persons' sleep becomes lighter they stop snoring._

She started to turn to her side and was suddenly hit with immense pain. The muscles on her back and arms protested, the glenohumeral joint in her right shoulder didn't like the harsh movement at all. She then realized that her body was likely covered in bruises and that she never cleaned her face the night before.

"Hello? Earth to Ziva," Tony said. She must have been lost in her thoughts. Tony was touching her hand which lay between them on the mattress.

She turned her hand, this time much more gently, to take his hand and held it tight. "Thank you," she said, her voice all raspy from sleep.

She was surprised that she had actually slept so long that Tony had woken up before her, and so deep that she hadn't noticed him getting up to close the blinds and settle under the covers again. Sleep had been illusive for her, her dreams too vivid for her to face. She did not remember if she dreamt that night, or better, what the dream had been about. She assumed she must have been too exhausted to wake from him getting up, or even from the most vivid of dreams.

"So, what did happen to your hands?" He pulled her out of her thoughts again.

If it wasn't for the fact that they were alone in her room, on her bed and holding hands, Ziva might have just dismissed his question. Staring in his eyes, seeing his true feelings and none of the jokes he usually threw at anyone and everyone who went too deep for him, she could not bring herself to do it.

"I wanted to be prepared." She stated simply. Completely honest with him and herself.

"To fight Bodner?" He frowned.

"To be able to fight anything life is going to throw at me." Life would throw some ugly things at her during the next days, possibly even weeks. She was sure of it.

She had killed man wanted by the CIA and Homeland Security, on a South African ship with her private weapon. She knew there was little chance of her getting out of it and not losing her job, or even worse; her citizenship. She groaned. "I have to get up," she started to roll over again, but Tonys grip on her hand prevented her from doing so.

"You're not going anywhere." He said. "You're on bedrest until you can move again," he smiled at her compassionately "without groaning or contorting your beautiful face into positions it really shouldn't be in. You'll get wrinkles that way, think about it."

_Your beautiful face. _She loved that he called her that. But she had to get up. Face the charges that would be filed against her. Anything to distract herself from the fact that there was nothing left that she could do now. Nothing to block out the feeling of loneliness that spread in her heart all too quickly and had never really left since that fateful day her father was killed. "You should know by now that I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself," she said. Not even looking at him. "I need to get ready for the CIA and Homeland to question me, not to mention South African authorities. The longer I wait to get this over with the worse it will get."

He still hadn't let go of her hand. Then, after several moments she finally looked into his eyes again. "They're not going to question you," he broke the news to her. "You have more guardian angels than you realize, Greg." It was meant to be a joke, but of course she didn't get his movie reference.

"I do not understand what you are saying," she said, confused.

"Well, apparently Ilan Bodner was killed last night during hand-to-hand combat with a Mossad Officer called Lisa Daumen, who has disappeared and probably will not resurface again." Tony said casually, like he was talking about the weather. Then he changed the topic. "Ducky will want to see you later when he gets off work, you should go and take a shower."

Ziva was absolutely stunned - someone had really stuck out their neck for her? Her, who had killed her fathers' murderer while on orders to stay away from him? Her, who had no one left in this world to care for her? She closed her eyes. Should she really get out of this one that fast and easy? She never just "got away" with anything.

"You alright?" Tony asked and nudged her uninjured shoulder softly.

For a few seconds everything was quiet. She turned her head to him, tears pooling in her eyes. Then she turned completely and he welcomed her into his arms. This was it, she broke down without a conscious thought cried into Tonys shirt and let him run his hands up and down her back soothingly.

To her surprise she didn't feel weak, or empty though. She felt home and for the first time since her parents split up, she felt whole. It was a good feeling.


End file.
